Tricks of memory

It's been one of those weeks where I've done a lot on various things, but not enough on any one thing to be worth a blog post. Instead, I'm raiding the archives and looking at a 40-year-old copy of Vogue Patterns. I've chosen 1984 because last week I was at an event related to the Liverpool Waterfront Transformation Project, and talking to someone about when I first came to the city in the early eighties - so the decade was on my mind. Although looking at some of the images now, they seem more alien to me than many of the illustrations in 1940s-50s issues. Even though I can remember many of the styles, it feels odd that I actually lived through that period.

Autumn 1984

In November 1984 I was a second year geography student, and most definitely not using Vogue patterns as they were well outside my budget. (For example, a Style blouse pattern from that year cost £2.25, while a Vogue blouse pattern cost £4.00.)

One thing which immediately struck me was that whereas in the 1950s and 1960s there were a lot of large advertisements for fabric manufacturers, complete with a list of stockists (usually department stores), by this time most of the advertising was for individual fabric shops.

Two of the fabric shop adverts

There are a couple of features on fabric brands: the much missed (by me at least) Viyella, and John Kaldor which, 40 years later, is still producing top quality fabrics.

Sadly not forever

I never knew the John Kaldor was originally an Australian firm

By 1984, Vogue patterns were clearly into the 'dress like a rectangle' years.

Why?

At least I like the shoes

The 'long skirt and flat shoes' combo was popular, too. I do remember dressing like this - at 1.63m/5'4" I must have looked swamped in fabric!

Worryingly familiar

I'm rather taken with the jumper in this illustration; I might need to look out for the issue of Vogue Knitting which contains it (because obviously, I am in desperate need of another knitting project!).

Promising

This jumper however I can definitely live without!

Bright and batwing and mohair oh my!

Skirts may have been long, but apparently trousers were not.

For that 'shrunk in the wash' look

After all these up-to-the-minute styles, it's rather a shock to turn a page and come across these.

Possibly aimed at older readers?

This issue also features Vogue's foray into patterns for interior décor. They are, to put it politely, not to my taste.

Frilled to bits

Readers were advised to "watch for more patterns in this series", which to me sounds more of a threat than an enticement! Certainly I won’t be rushing to hunt through later pattern books for them, although I do wonder how long this line lasted.